Missoula Woman Attacks Man With a Knife for Not Giving a Drink

Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - On August 30, 2023, Missoula Police Department officers were dispatched to a report of an assault with a weapon investigation near the Poverello Center. The 911 caller stated that a Native American female was chasing a male, later identified as R.T., with a knife.

An officer arrived on the scene and located R.T. on Hawthorne Street near the POV. R.T. advised that he has known the female suspect, who was identified as 62-year-old Melinda Oldperson, for years. R.T. said Oldperson appeared intoxicated and began calling him racial slurs after he refused to share a drink with her. R.T. said Oldperson also threw a rock at him, but it missed.

According to court documents, Oldperson then grabbed a knife out of a bag, approached R.T., and thrust it toward him. Oldperson got within three to four feet of R.T. with the knife before he ran away. R.T. told the officer that if he did not get away, the knife would have stabbed him and could have caused some serious damage.

Officers spoke to several other witnesses who reported R.T. had to run away from Oldperson to keep her from stabbing him. A POV employee advised she heard a disturbance and saw a crowd forming. She observed Oldperson following R.T. while holding a knife. She then contacted 911 and told Oldperson to stop what she was doing.

An officer spoke to Oldperson and asked her where the knife was. Oldperson said it was “probably” in the bag. Oldperson gave consent to the officer to get the knife out of the bag. The officer located a black-handled folding knife with a blade that was black in color as described by the witnesses.

Oldperson was placed under arrest and transported to the Missoula County Detention Center. She is currently being charged with felony assault with a weapon. On August 31, 2023, Oldperson made her initial appearance in Missoula Justice Court and her bond was set at $15,000.

The information in this article was obtained from sources that are publicly viewable.